Monday, January 3, 2011

Listening to this Ramones live disc recorded...

in Spain it sounds like circa 1992. I'm a little suspicious that Joey's vocals are heavily pitch-modified because he's spot on through the disc...pitch wise anyway.  I dunno, maybe he was just that god...

Bucha slackjawed freakwits...

While waiting at the bus stop this morning I noticed that nobody really stops at the 4-way stop here. It ranges from the most cursory of 'stops' to just blowing through. I don't wanna hear any more shit about bicyclists going through stop signs...

Fucking sleep study...follow up

That freaking snore machine drives me nuts! Not working at all...

New Year

Well shit! 2011! Figured we'd be livin' on the fuckin' moon by now or something...

Friday, November 26, 2010

"Build it and Ride It"

I found an amazing book from 1948 called "Build It and Ride It." It has plans for a couple dozen soap box derby racers. I need to get to a copy shop and start scanning that stuff in and posting up on Bloomington Carbon Free Racing, but dizzam! this book rocks.

This could inspire a lengthy column about how "back in the old days" people had to make their own toys but I'm not in the mood, nor, I suspect, is the rest of the planet.

Suffice it to say that this is a well written book directed at young readers (and possibly their parents, though I also suspect in 1948 parents weren't too concerned with turning their kids loose with a bunch of tools and wood) that is definitely also a relic of a different time.

New moped

Pictures to come.

1982 Tomos Silver Bullet christened-

"Miss Bob Seger."

Monday, November 22, 2010

Giant leaf-sucking vacuums

Last week it seems the concept of doing away with the giant leaf sucking vacuums was being bandied about by the city.  It really only makes sense.  I, of course, turn all that carbon into compost, and would encourage others to do the same, if they garden. But not everybody like plants, or flowers, or food, or saving the planets, so we can expect everybody to do so.

This is a good example of a service that is nice but unnecessary. People have been raking their lawns for a long time, or paying some neighborhood kid to do it. A newer service like this is kind if cool but not necessary. I bought an electric leaf blower for $25 that can be reversed and used as a mulcher. The biggest pile of leaves can be turned into a pile less than 1/4 of the size in no time at all. Compost them, fill in holes, spread them on your lawn.

In my readings on compost, wide ad varied that they are, I have read about communities starting their own compost piles. IF these leaves were going to something like that then it might be worthwhile, however, I'm pretty sure these are ending up in the landfill.

This could be a good service for someone to get into. A monthly yard waste and non-toxic bio-waste removal (as in everything that is kitchen waste except for meats, bones and oils, the basic non-compostable stuff)with a composting facility where yard waste couple be mulched and mixed with kitchen waste. Stir, add water, and bada-bing. You got yerself a product to sell- compost.